RESUMO
PURPOSE: The purpose of this study was to compare the nursing needs of parturient women with those of nurses during the perinatal period. METHODS: The subjects of this study were in two groups, one of which was composed of 244 postpartum women (vaginal delivery) while the other was composed of 144 nurses. The data was collected using a self-report Questionnaire between July and November of 2007, and was analyzed using the SPSS Win12.0 program. RESULT: Statistically significant differences were found in nursing needs, specifically in the aspects of physical care, safety of delivery and newborn care between the nurse group and the parturient women group during the perinatal period. Furthermore, the nursing needs of parturient women were higher than those of nurses with regard to environmental needs, safety of delivery, newborn care, and especially among items such as routine examinations and the maintenance of hygiene during labor, as well as a desire for "kind and faithful" care. In addition, it was found that the nursing needs of parturient women in Women's hospitals were higher than those in University hospitals. CONCLUSION: This study showed that parturient women desire to be educated regarding Perinatal care for themselves and for their newborn.